Looper



June 19', 1923. v v 1,459,048

H. A. CUMFER LOOPER Filed March 21 1921 2 Sheets-Sheet l June 19, 1923.

H A. CUMFER LooPER Filed March 21. 1921 2 Sheets-Sheet-Z 2 w g W o f fl. y m J w M w r Patented June 19, 1923.

HARRY A. CUHFEB, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGIIOR TO GUY'ION & CUMFER MFG.

CO.,. A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

LOOPER.

Application as March 21, 1921. Serial No. 454,248.

To all whom it 'nuzy concern:

Be it known that I, HARRY A. C'UMFER, a citizen of the United States, residing at. Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useprovide a new device of this character.

In the manufacture of sheet roofing, con

tinuous sheets of felt, or similar material forming the base for sheet roofing are saturated with a water proofing material, such as asphaltum, or the like, and put through other processes and machines in the act of making the finished product. The sheet 1s necessarily kept in constant uniform motion in its path through the baths of the asphaltum and during the application thereto of a plastic substance and while the slate covering is being applied. Between these various steps, necessary for the conversion of the felt sheet into rolls of roofing, segregated shingles or shingle-simulating strips, the sheet, with its saturant and subsequently with its plastic coating, is heated to very high temperatures and 1t becomes highly desirable for the, sheet to become relatively cool before entering upon the following steps of its treatment in the progress of completion. It is inexpedient to stop the operation of the apparatus or machines necessary in its manufacture to give it time to cool to the desired degree, and to stretch it out ina single longitudinal sheet between the machines operating thereon would en- .tail housing space too large and expensive to be seriousl considered. Furthermore, as the sheets 0 felt come in large rolls, the sheets of the rolls must be joined together to constitute, in effect, a continuous sheet as it passes through the various baths and machines required for its conversion into the desired product, otherwise the very undesirable task of threading a new sheet through the various machines and hot baths becomes necessary. This is 'a disagreeable and expensive operation and must be avoided in conducting an efiicient mode of procedure in the process of manufacture.

To ermit the parts of the sheet being operat on to stop in its movement to point improvements in of completion would produce an ununiform product and disorganize the harmonious cooperation of the various machines and processes and disturb their timed relation.

The invention, which is sub'ect of this application, in a practical embodiment, consists of an elongated frame having a series of constantly moving, spaced-apart supports from which are suspended, in the aggate, an extended length of the hot sheet, ormed thereon into a series of vertical traveling loops, so arranged that the loops taken from the far end of the machine and those put on at the near end of the machine do not have any modifying effect on the movement of the sheet before or after it is arranged on the looper and, therefore, the movement of the sheet 'at one end'of the looper may be stopped, for a limited period of time, necessary to join it to the sheet of another roll without disturbin the movement of the sheet as it leaves t e looper or thereafter.

In the drawings Fig. 1 is a side elevation of an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the looper.

Fig. 3is an enlar sectional view of a fragment of the mac ine showing the means for forming the loops of uniform length, in one ition.

Fig. 4 is a similar view showing position of the parts while the loop is being formed.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view of gear mechanism for driving the loo er alternatively at normal speed, and at hig er speed to replenby cross bars 14, 15 and 16 to opposite posts such as 13'. The posts are also connected together on the respective sides by the longitudinally extending bars 17 and 17'.

Trackways are provided for the loop supports by the angle irons 18 and 18' at the top and similar bars 19 and 19 at the bottom which are parallel and areconnected to the upright posts.

A pair of brackets 20'are secured to the posts 11, near theirrespective tnp ends to support a transverse shaft 21. ecu'red to 'the shaft 21 are a pair of sprocket wheels 22 in vertical planes with the track bars 18 and 18;"respectively. At the lower ends of the posts 11' brackets 23 are secured to support a transverse shaft 24 to which are secured a pair of sprocket wheels 25 in the vertical planes of the tracks 19-19, respectively. The brackets 23 are each provided with a slidable shaft bearing 26 which is movable along the guides 27, provided on the brackets, by a screw 28 for the purpose to take up slack ill/the chains 29-29 which move along the tracks 18-18 and 19-19, respectively, and which pass around the pair of sprocket wheels 22 and 25, respectivel Another pair of brackets 30-30 are xed to the posts 13-13, respectively, near their top ends to support a transverse shaft 31 to which are secured the sprocket wheels 32-32 for driving the chains 29-29.

The chains are connected together at frequent uniform intervals by transversely extending bars 33. These bars have their ends resting on the horizontal tracks 18-18 and 19-19. Another pair of sprocket wheels 34-34 are connected to a transverse shaft 35 that finds bearings 36-36 that are carried by the posts 13-13.

Parallel with the frame is a power shaft 37 finding bearings in floor standards 38. A sleeve 39 passes thru the bearing of the standard 38 and over the shaft 37 bears on one end a clutch member 40, and on the other end a miter gear 41. A slidable clutch member 42 is made rotatable with the shaft 37 by the feather 43. The clutch member is moved into driving contact with the member 40 by the lever 44 which is pivoted thereto and to the floor, as at 50. When the clutch members are in contact the miter gear '41 is rotated.

Another, similar, miter gear 45 is loose on the shaft 37 and bears a clutch member 46. A slidable clutch member 47 is made rotatable with the shaft 37 by the feather 48. It is slidably moved on the shaft by a lever 49 ivoted thereto. and to the floor, as at 50'.

he levers 44 and 49 are connected togther by a bar 51 so that when the levers are moved to the left gear wheel 45 will be rotated and gear wheel 41. will be loose on the shaft 37. If the levers be moved in opposite direction the wheel 41 will be driven by the shaft and gear wheel 45 will be loose thereon.

A vertical shaft 52 finds a step bearing in the hub 53 on the standard 38. It also has bearing supports in the brackets 54-55 and 56, that are secured to the post 13. Near the lower end of the shaft 52 is fixed a double miter gear wheel 57-58 in mesh with the gear wheels 41 and 45, respectively.

resaoee -When the gear 41 is driven by the shaft 37 the'upright shaft 52 will be driven at a relatively high speed and when the wheel 45 is rotated by the shaft 37, the shaft 52 will be driven at, normal and relatively slower speed.

Connected to the top end of the upright shaft 52 a miter gear 59 is in mesh with a similar gear 60 which is fixed on the end of a transversely extending shaft 61 which finds bearings in the blocks 62 and 63, that are fixed to the posts 13-13. The shaft 61 carries a feed roller 64. Another transversely extending shaft 65 is supported in bearings 66 and 67.

The shafts 61 and 65 are geared together by gear wheels 68 and 69, so that the rollers 64 and 70, the latter being mounted on the shaft 65 will be rotated to feed the sheet 71 into the looper.

Extending from the brackets 62 and 63 are outwardly extending arms 72 and 73, in which a frame 74 is pivot-ally supported, as at 75, and in the free ends thereof are bearings 66 and 67 for the shaft 65. A lever 76 is connected to the frame, as at 77, which extends beyond the fulcrum point 75 and bears on its inner end a weight 78 which causes the rollers to frictionally en age the sheet 71 sufliciently to feed it. hen the weight is raised and the rollers separated, the sheet no longer will be fed.

' On the shaft 61 is a sprocket gear 79 which is connected by a sprocket chain 80 to a much larger sprocket wheel 81, that is mounted on a transverse shaft 82 mounted in bearings 83-83, secured to the posts 13-13. Another sprocket gear 84 is. fixed to the shaft 82, connected to the sprocket wheel 85, that is fixed to the shaft 31 by the chain 86. The sprocket wheels 32 and 32' are also fixed to the shaft 31 and by this means the pair of chains 29-29 are driven, its direction of motion at the top is from right to left, looking at Fig. 1. I

Pivoted to the posts 13-13' are a pair of rods 87, as at 88. They carry on their free formed loop is about one-third of the length of its fellows and thereafter will continue in its formation until the beginning of the next loop. The speed of the chains without changing the speed of the sheet is the controlling factor determining the lengths of theloops.

Now, assume that it becomes desirable to splice the sheet 71 without interfering with the movement of the sheet after it leaves the,

looper. The clutches should be opened to stop the movement of the chains 29-29 and this will also stop the feed of the sheet. The loops will now be removed from the left end of the looper, one at a time. There are enough loops on the machine to permit more than enough time to join the sheet to that of a new roll. After the joint has been completed clutc membersv 40-42 are brought into driving contact by movement of hand levers 44 or 49 to the right, whereupon miter gear 41 will be positively driven which will move the chains, sheet supports and sheet feeding rollers at a considerably increased velocity, thereby 'filling the machine with 'as many loops as have been taken off during the necessary stop. When the definciency has been supplied and the machine substantially filled with loops, the handles 4449 are moved in the opposite direction to close clutch members 46 and 47 and open the clutch members 40-42, whereupon miter gear will drive the aforesaid moving instrumentalities at a slower and normal speed.

The looper may be used only as means to cool the sheet, and they may be located at intervals in a system provided for making roofing. After the sheet has been subjected to the effect of the hot asphalt, it would immediately be passed into a-looper to cool it in condition to receive the next treatment to which it is to be subjected. In a looper used for this purpose the loops will be moved.

continuously at all timeswithout interruption, as above described.

The normal movement of the sheet thru the looper should be at substantially the same and uniform speed at which it is moved while undergoing other treatments necessary before the product is completed.

Having described my 1nvention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A device for arranging a continuous sheet of constantly moving fabric in uniform, parallel, loops, comprising a frame; transversely positioned, uniformly spacedapart, parallel supports, one for each loop;

means for bodily and continuously moving said supports along a common path on said frame; means to hold the fabric on each support consecutively while moving, whereby to form a loop between adjacent supports and means to accelerate formation of subsequently formed loops.

2, A device for arranging a continuous sheet of constantly moving fabric in uniform, parallel loops, comprising a frame; transversely positioned, uniformly spacedapart, parallel supports, one for each loop means for engaging opposite ends of said support to bodily, uniformly and consecutively move them along a common path on vals to the adjacent chains; means to feed a fabric to be looped to said moving supports; means to hold the fabric on a support adjacent the feeding means to form loops between adjacent supports and means to change the speed of the moving fabric.

4. A device for arranging a continuous sheet of constantly moving fabric in uniform, parallel loops, comprising a frame; transversely ositioned, uniformly spacedapart, paralle sup orts arranged in a horizontal plane, one or each loop; means for bodily and continuously moving said su ports at a given speed along a common at on said frame, means to hold the fabric on each support, consecutively while moving whereby to form a loop between adjacent supports; and means to change the speed of the loo forming operation to compensate for those that may be removed from the frame.

5. A device for arranging a continuous sheet of constantly moving fabric in uniform, parallel loops, comprising a frame; transversely positioned, uniformly spacedapart, parallel supports, one for each loop; means for bodily and continuously moving said supports along a common path on said frame; means to hold the fabric on the last moving support while the next loop is being formed; means for stopping the movement of the fabric and means to accelerate the speed of the fabric to compensate for the time the fabric is not moving.

6. A device for arranging a continuous sheet of constantly moving fabric in uniform, parallel loops, comprising a frame; transversely positioned, uniformly spacedapart, paralle supports, one for each loop; means for bodily and continuously movin said supports along a common path on sai frame; means to hold the fabric on the last moving support while a part of the next loop is being formed; means to feed the sheet to the supports; means to stop the movement of the sheet into the looper and to stop the movement of the loops and means to accelerate movement of. the sheet.

In testimony whereof I hereunto subscribe my name. I 

